The Magazine Podcast

Some articles have what it takes not only to arrest the attention, but also to change the life. Maurice Roberts published just such an article in the August–September 1995 issue of the magazine.  'Why Is There No Wrestling?' is a passionate plea for urgent prayer. It is a call to arms that is just as timely today — perhaps more so — as it was to its original readers thirty years ago.  We read the piece in full in this week's episode.    Featured resources: – Maurice Roberts, 'Why Is There No Wrestling?', Banner of Truth Magazine, Issues 383–384 (August–September 1995). Read the piece as a web article.    This week's featured article also appears in Maurice Roberts' paperback The Christian's High Calling, which is a compilation of pieces he wrote for the magazine.    The Banner 2026 Calendar: https://banneroftruth.org/uk/store/calendar/banner-2026-calendar/ Truth Spoken in Love: An Anthology of Quotations from J. C. Ryle (edited by Daniel W. McManigal): https://banneroftruth.org/store/devotional-books/truth-spoken-in-love/   Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

The following address, the second of two on the subject, was given by Rev. Iain H. Murray at the 1988 Banner of Truth Youth Conference.    Banner Resources on Assurance William Guthrie, The Christian's Great Interest Thomas Brooks, Heaven on Earth: Assurance in the Christian Life Thomas Brooks, Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices Thomas Brooks, The Works of Thomas Brooks, Volume III ('A Cabinet of Jewels', pg. 285–505) James Fraser, Am I a Christian?   Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

The following address, one of two on the subject, was given by Rev. Iain H. Murray at the 1988 Banner of Truth Youth Conference.    Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

There have always been calls for the church to de-emphasise doctrine. Sometimes these calls come from those who wish to promote 'unity' at any cost—enter the ecumenical movement. Sometimes they come from those who feel that the truths of the faith are encumbrances or 'stumbling blocks' to those who just want a simple faith.  This week's episode shows why such calls are so misguided. There can be no true Christian ministry without a setting forth of what B. B. Warfield called 'the great Christian verities'. The great need of the church, in every age, is to treasure, set forth, and 'to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints'. (Jude 3).     Featured resources: – Michael Haykin, 'A Lesson from a Victorian Preface', Banner of Truth Magazine, Issue 457 (October 2001).  – B. B. Warfield, 'The Indispensableness of Systematic Theology to the Preacher', Banner of Truth Magazine, Issue 613 (October 2014). This first appeared in Homiletic Review (Feb. 1897) and is featured in Princeton and the Work of the Christian Ministry, vol. 2, pp. 497–504 (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 2012).  – C. H. Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry (1900, repr. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1960, 2023), p. 292.    Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

Jeremiah Burroughs was a peace-loving Puritan. Without sacrificing the truth, he sought unity among those who professed it, and prayed, preached, and pleaded to that end. Indeed, Richard Baxter, who felt keenly the need for peace but struggled himself to promote it, once remarked that if all the Episcopalians had been like Archbishop [James] Ussher, all the Presbyterians like Stephen Marshall, and all the Independents like Jeremiah Burroughs, then the breaches of the church would soon have been healed.    Article read this week: – James Davison, 'The Irenic Jeremiah Burroughs', Banner of Truth Magazine, Issue 559 (April 2010).    Further reading: Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (paperback, 232 pages.)    This week's episode art features a detail from William Bell Scott (1811–1890), Bernard Gilpin making Peace among the Borders, takes down the Glove in Rothbury Church, circa 1570 (One of a series of eight oil paintings illustrating the history of the English Border). Public domain: see file on Wikimedia here.    Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

In Psalm 31, David prays the following about those who fear the Lord:    'In the cover of your presence you hide them from the plots of men; you store them in your shelter from the strife of tongues.'    In a world in which deception so often seems to prevail, and good reputations are tarnished by falsehoods, we need to realise afresh the power (and danger) of the tongue. We must lay hold of the God who can deliver us both from sinning with our tongues, and from 'the strife of tongues' when they are turned unjustly against us.    Featured Resources:  – Maurice Roberts, 'The Strife of Tongues', Banner of Truth Magazine, Issue 460 (January 2002).  – Arnold A. Dallimore, Spurgeon: A Biography (1984, repr. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1985, 2014), p. 69.   Further reading: John Flavel, Sinful Speech (Pocket Puritans) N.B. the text of this Pocket Puritan is taken from 'A Caution to Seamen: A Dissuasive against Several Horrid and Detestable Sins' in The Works of John Flavel, Vol. 5 and 'The Reasonableness of Personal Reformation' in The Works of John Flavel, Vol. 6.    Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast    

Unearth the controversial Socinianism that challenged Reformed churches for centuries. Delve into the origins of Lelio Sozzini and his unitarian inclinations, influenced by a blend of Roman Catholic training and free-thinking. Explore John Calvin's warnings against speculative theology and the systemic errors propagated by Faustus Sozzini’s work with the Polish Brethren. Discover how denying Christ’s deity impacts worship and morality, and hear about the historical rebuttals from Andrew Fuller and others that shaped the theological landscape.

As summer turns to autumn in the northern hemisphere, we do hope this note finds you doing well. This week we bring you an audio recording of Iain H. Murray speaking on 'John Knox' at the 2003 Youth Conference in Leicester, England.    More resources on John Knox: – The Select Practical Writings of John Knox (Clothbound, 336 pages) – The Works of John Knox (6 Volumes, 3824 pages) – D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, John Knox and the Reformation (paperback, 144 pages)   Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

This week we bring you a conversation with Rev Jim McCarthy of Trinity Presbyterian Church, Statesboro, Georgia. Jim is the author of a new exposition of the two (yes, two) minor prophets who were sent by God to Nineveh, a leading city (and later capital) of the Assyrian empire. Join us as we consider what these two biblical books have to say to us today.  The Two Prophets To Nineveh (paperback, 120 pages) will be released on October 6. You can join the waitlist to be informed when the title is available for purchase.    Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast

This week we read some words of comfort and counsel suitable for all weary believers, and especially for pastors who feel stretched beyond what they can bear.    Featured Resources:  – C. H. Spurgeon, 'The Minister's Fainting Fits,' in The Minister's Self-Watch & The Minister's Fainting Fits (booklet), (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 2025), p. 40–42. This lecture also appears in Lectures to My Students by the same author.  – Robert Murray M'Cheyne, 'To the Rev. Dan. Edwards' in Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M'Cheyne (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1966, 2024), p. 282.  – Robert Murray M'Cheyne, 'To the Rev. W. C. Burns' in Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M'Cheyne (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1966, 2024), p. 216.  – Robert Murray M'Cheyne, 'To the Rev. W. C. Burns' in Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M'Cheyne (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1966, 2024), p. 289.    New from the Banner:  The Minister's Self-Watch and The Minister's Fainting Fits (booklet)   Explore the work of the Banner of Truth: www.banneroftruth.org Subscribe to the Magazine (print/digital/both): www.banneroftruth.org/magazine Leave us your feedback or a testimony: www.speakpipe.com/magazinepodcast